HBO Comedy Half-Hour

Dana Gould translates neurotic dread into tight, theatrical premises in a set built around the minor anxieties of daily life. The standout bit is an extended plea for a literal alarm system to prevent bad decisions, specifically a large man in a tuxedo and top hat who jumps out of a closet to operatically yell “Mistaaaaake!” right before things go wrong.

Filmed live at The Fillmore in San Francisco as part of the HBO Comedy Half-Hour series, the 28-minute television broadcast captures the comic during a busy transitional period in his career. He had recently finished a writing and performing stint on The Ben Stiller Show and would soon move to a long run as a writer and producer for The Simpsons. His performance relies on the precise, tightly wound sensibility that made him a staple of the alternative comedy boom.